Guidance Counseling

School counselors are available at each of our 17 WISD campuses to support our 10,000+ students and their families with their guidance counseling needs. The role of the school counselor is to provide social and emotional support while fostering a safe and caring environment for our WISD students. We strive to empower our WISD students to graduate from high school, to become college and career ready, and to inspire our students to ultimately be successful and responsible citizens.

Texas law (TEC § 33.005) requires school counselors to integrate the following four key components through a comprehensive school guidance program, which are included in The Texas Model for Comprehensive School Counseling Programs which is published by the Texas Counseling Association in accordance with its licensing agreement with the Texas Education Agency.

Elementary

Junior High

High School

Key Components

Guidance Curriculum
School counselors teach ALL students basic life Intrapersonal and Interpersonal Effectiveness, Post-secondary Planning and Career Readiness and Personal Health and Safety that are identified as essential for academic and personal success:
- Self-confidence
- Motivation to achieve
- Decision-making, goal-setting, planning and problem-solving
- Communication skills
- Cross-cultural effectiveness
- Responsible behavior
- Conflict resolutions skills
- Career and post-secondary education exploration
Individual Academic Planning
School counselors help students transition, plan, and manage their educational and career plans:
- Academic counseling
- Course selection/scheduling
- High School of Choice applications
- Four-year graduation plans
- Post-secondary planning
- AP placement
- Dual credit placement and application process
Responsive Services
School counselors assist students with immediate personal concerns, crises, or problems that may be challenging to academic success:
- Short-term individual counseling
  - Harassment issues
  - Bullying and victimization
  - Suicide prevention
- Small group counseling
  - Social skills
  - Death of a family member/friend
  - Family divorce
  - Substance abuse
- Academic concerns
  - Test anxiety
- - Study skills
  - Classroom performance
System Support
School counselors coordinate many programs designed to support students and families:
- Special program referrals (MTSS, Section 504, SPED, Dyslexia, etc.)
- Parent education workshops
- Community resource liaison
- Staff development for educators